Opposite feelings
by Anne-Li890
Summary: Lily Potter found out about the prophecy before Dumbledore told them, and went into hiding with Harry. Voldemort still found them, and Harry is still the Boy-Who-Lived. Now, fourteen years later, the Order finds Harry...
1. The Beginning

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (wish I did though :P)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (wish I did though :P)**

**Summary: Lily found out about the prophecy before Dumbledore told them, and fled with Harry. Voldemort still found them after six years though. But now, fourteen years after Lily left, the order finds Harry, and he must deal with new friends, a new school, AND his new found father! **

Chapter one:

The Beginning

In the little town of Godric's Hallow, someone was crying. On 7722-halfmoon crescent, a woman could be heard crying. The woman in question was a beautiful woman, even with her now red and puffy eyes. She had beautiful dark red hair, which flowed down her back to halfway her arms. She had the brightest emerald eyes, to which she was she was complimented a lot. She sat on the couch, hugging her knees, and crying into them. Her husband was not home, he was at the Ministry doing reports on a battle that happened yesterday. The woman, whose name was Lily Evans, now Potter, looked over to her one-year old son, who was sleeping in his playpen in the corner. Her eyes swelled up with a fresh wave of tears.

After she had calmed down, she looked over to the clock. It now read 08:37 PM. Her husband, James, would be home at around nine, unless he had to stay in late. It was time to make her choice. She had the information, now she had to decide between hurting, perhaps breaking, yet protecting her husband and son, or put them in danger. Should she choose the latter, she could be putting more in danger that she was aware of, like Sirius and Amy, and Remus an Aeris and their children.

Her eyes got a determinating look in them. She had made her choice. Family was everything to her, and so were her friends. It was going to be tough, but this was war. All is fair in Love and War.

Wiping the remaining tears from her eyes, she got up and went upstairs. She packed what she needed most, and shrank some small furniture as well. Then she went over to her son's room and did the same. She took some money out of their reserve drawer, and packed some food as well as her son's bottle and diaper stuff. In total she now had a carry on, a backpack and her purse. She went to get her son, before her eyes fell on spare bits of parchment. She had to prevent James looking for them, no matter how much it would hurt her. She got a quill and some ink, pulling a piece of parchment over to her.

When she was finished, she looked it over. Deciding it would do, she got up and went to Harry. Picking up her son, she took one last glance at what was her home. What would always be her home. Because this is where she would be with James. Taking one last look around the room, her eyes found a picture of her and James on their wedding day. She took the photograph of the shelf and stuffed it into her bag.

She didn't dare look back again, for fear she would chicken out. She quickly and quietly slipped through the front door, thankful that Harry was still asleep. She got to the sidewalk and aparated to a place she and her family had once gone to when she was little.

Too bad she hadn't noticed the letter she had written to James had teardrops all over it.

Almost an hour later the fireplace erupted in green flames, and a man stumbled out and landed flat on his face onto the ground.

'Bloody floo.' The man thought. 'Why do I _always_ have to _fall_ out and onto the floor?' He got up and dusted himself off. He looked around and noticed the room was dark. "Lumos" the man whispered, and the tip of his wand lid up. 'Lily's probably already in bed. I've _got_ to complain about Moody's workload.' Though there was something different about the room. It seemed colder, and… was there furniture missing? 'Has Lily been redecorating already? Women… Mmm, wonder if she left anything in the fridge for me?' He flicked on the light in the kitchen and got out some milk. When he sat down at the table, he noticed a piece of parchment that hadn't been there before. He picked it up and read it. When he was finished his eyes where as big as sausages, and he sat still for _at least_ an hour. The letter read:

_Dear James,_

I am finding it hard to write this letter, though I don't know why. It really is fairly simple, really. I am leaving you. I don't feel we can be together like this, and I am not happy this way. There is a war going on and we cannot forget it. You are busy fighting, and barely have time for Harry. You could die any moment, and I don't think it good for Harry growing up with that insecurity. Nor is it good for me. Especially when you come home hours late without as much as a call!!

_So I am leaving, as I feel this will not work out. I have taken Harry with me. There is no hope for us James, so don't go looking for us. Don't make it harder than it already is._

_Love,_

_Lily _

When James got his thoughts back in order, (or as much as one can after finding out the love of your life left you without as much as a goodbye in words, taking your son with her) he noticed a couple of subtle wrongs in her letter. She wrote it in a way saying 'I don't care much' yet she writes not to make it harder _than it already is_. The letter was also covered in teardrops, so it _had _hurt her to write it. And her reasons where all bullshit. And at the end she wrote _Love_ Lily. Something was just not right with this, and James was going to get to the bottom of it.

Six years later the news of Lily's death, Voldemort's defeat, and Harry Potter being "The-Boy-Who-Lived" reached their ears.

**Well, this is my first chappie!!**

**You know what I want, so just klik the review button already! **


	2. A day in His life

Chapter two:

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Why, I would be filthy rich now if I did!**

Chapter two:

A day in His life

Fifteen years had passed since the night Lily Potter left, but if felt like yesterday. It was currently 01:43 AM, and everyone in the city of Fairfax was asleep. All except one person. This person was a resident of "St Marie's Orphanage". This person, a boy of fifteen years old, had raven-black hair that stuck up at all angels. He had the most beautiful and stunning emerald eyes, though currently hidden behind round wire glasses. He also had a lightening bolt-shaped scar on his forehead. He was hidden beneath his bedcovers, looking through an old photo album with a flashlight. He was looking at the first page of the old and partly burned book, which held the photograph of both his parents on their wedding day. The picture was the most worn out in the book, because it was the most looked at. It showed a man, with the exact same hair and facial features as the boy himself. He was smiling goofily happy at the camera. In his arms he held a women, with dark red hair flowing just past her shoulders, and bright emerald eyes, glistening with tears of happiness. She had such a big smile one her face it looked like her face would be split into two.

The boy, as you probably guessed, was Harry Potter. Or Harry Evans as he now went by. Lily Potter had fled to America that night. She and her family had once gone on a trip there, visiting the capital of the United States. She had lived with her son in a city nearby, called Fairfax. She had changed both their last names, as an extra precaution to prevent being found. There they lived happily for six years. Unfortunately they were found.

It had just started to rain on the night of October 31st 1988, and Lily and Harry had just come home from their night of Trick-or-Treating. Harry still remembered it well, he was sitting on his mothers lap while she was telling him a story, looking at his box of sweets with pride, barely able to wait till the next day to eat them.

Then he came.

Harry didn't know how Voldemort found them, but he did. He killed Harry's mother, who died trying to save Harry. She sacrificed herself for her son in a way only a mother could, giving Harry a protection of Love. Voldemorts killing curse of hate could not penetrate that protection, and so it rebounded and hit him, Voldemort, instead. There was not a day that got by without Harry mourning her death. It had a bigger impact on him than anyone could imagine, though he never let it on.

They hadn't had many close contacts in America. Harry didn't understand then, but he did now. Voldemort had been after him and his mom, and in times of war you didn't know who you could trust, so Lily didn't put much of her trust in many people. Just another precaution to prevent being found.

However, they did have one close friend, Annie Parker. And most surprisingly, she was a witch. Probably the only one they had encountered in America. But she was also a friend of Dumbledore's, because she was in the Order of the Phoenix. His mother and Annie had only met a few times during Order meetings, but enough to know what the other looked like.

You see, when Lily fled to America, she forgot one thing: Dumbledore had Annie Parker stationed in Springfield, a nearby city, to lay contact with magical America. One day Lily and Annie literally bumped into each other. They recognized each other, and Lily almost begged Annie not to tell Dumbledore, because since Lily disappeared Annie was to be on the lookout for her as well.

Lily told her why she fled, and thereby convinced Annie that it was a good enough reason to keep it a secret from Dumbledore and the Order. After that they became good friends, and Lily trusted Annie more than anyone.

Annie had also played a big part in keeping Harry hidden from the Order. After Voldemort's attack, the muggle police came to their house. Harry had fallen unconscious after the attack, and the police brought him to the hospital. They stood before a big mystery however, concerning Lily's death. It had been all over the newspapers, '**Mysterious Death**' and '** Murder or Accident?**' the headlines had read, with a picture of the burning house on the front page.

To Harry everything had been a blur, he only knew what happened from what Annie told him. After Annie had seen the newspaper, she had immediately gone to their house to see if it was indeed the killing curse, and where Harry was. When she got there she had been shocked with what she saw. On the front page the house had been whole and burning, but now most of the upstairs floor had gone, and downstairs parts of the wall had fallen down. There was still a team researching the scene. She had gone over to one of the policemen that was holding the crowd back, and talked to him. After a lot of arguing and convincing she was let in, and she went to the places where she knew Lily had kept important stuff, got it as much of it as was possible, as most of it was burned, and took it back to her home. After that she had gone to Harry, who, after his wounds were healed, had fallen asleep.

The rest of the day had been a blur to her too, because she was also half in shock. She had gone home, and there she contacted Dumbledore. He had not been happy to hear about this, that she remembered quite well. She explained everything she had read in the newspaper, and what she had been able to find out at the scene of the crime. Withholding, of course, the information that she had known about Lily all along and that she knew where Harry was. She told him she didn't know where Lily's body was being kept, or where Harry was, because they wouldn't tell her because she had no relation to them. Dumbledore had immediately called the Order to an emergency meeting, and told them about the attack. She had to explain everything she had explained to Dumbledore to the Order as well, with many interruptions, and Annie had said she also remembered the looks on the faces of those who were especially close to Lily.

Another big shocker came that night, when Dumbledore informed the Order of the existence of a prophecy. That prophecy would be the reason Voldemort went after Lily and Harry in the first place. Annie had known of it's existence, and what it came down to, but not it's exact wording, and Dumbledore told them neither. Only that it was a prophecy they needed to protect at all cost. At the end of the meeting he took James Potter aside, and Annie had suspected that he told James what the prophecy came down to.

Harry knew Annie had a tough job getting him to an orphanage without the Order finding out, with their search teams and tracking-charms. Now that they knew what area he was in, they could localize their searching. But thanks to Annie's charms they hadn't found him. In fact, because they couldn't find him, they widened their searching-range.

Annie, of course, kept him up to date with most of what the Order was doing, and so had also told him about Dumbledore's theory of how he had survived the killing curse. Though he personally thought it was far fetched, it was certainly a possibility.

He sighed, as he pulled back to the land of the living. He looked over the photograph one more time, wishing he could finally meet his father.

But he understood, and respected his mother's wish for them not to meet until the time was right.

He put the album away; careful not to wake his roommates, flicked the flashlight off, and laid down. It didn't take him long to fall asleep.

"Wake UP!!" Harry woke up to a cold slash in the face. A very big splash at that. He looked down at his bed and found almost everything at head-end wet. He groaned, thinking about how Julie was going to make _him_ clean it up.

Almost every morning it was the same story. Harry would over-sleep, and his roommates would wake him up one way or another that they found hilarious. He did not.

He pulled the now wet covers over his head and buried himself under it, knowing full well that it would annoy his roommates.

"You do realize that I am going to miss the bus because of you? The bus is here at 08:15, and it's now five past eight."

"…"

"Fine Harry, your choice. Have fun in detention" the boy said

Harry felt something being pushed under his covers. It was the alarm clock. 'Probably Joey.' He thought. When he looked at it he saw it was indeed five past eight.

His eyes widened as he jumped out of bed, cursing all the way to the bathroom. He took a quick shower, and while putting on his pants, he thought back to last night. He had been studying magic, but because he was so distracted he had gotten out his photo album. For some reason the damn thing always got him to clear his mind.

He pulled his sweater over his head, and looked into the mirror. 'Damn hair' he thought as he looked at his reflection. No matter what he did with it, nothing worked. His hair had a will of its own, and was untamable, as some said. Just like him. He carefully put in his contacts. He had worn them since he was twelve. His glasses, after all, didn't do much for his appearance. He quickly brushed his teeth, not bothering to brush his hair, and looked at his reflection. He had blue jeans on, but they didn't get far up, about halfway his butt, even with the belt. But that was the fashion, and it got him attention, so he wasn't complaining. He had a sweater that was horizontally striped black and gray. He pushed the sleeves up to his elbow, and left the hood down.

"Yo Harry!! Hurry up!! You're not a girl are you!!" the boy yelled.

Rolling his eyes, he yelled back: " You mean you _still_ haven't noticed?!" he mocked

He heard Matt grumble something, but he didn't listen.

He opened the door and got out. He saw himself and Matt, his best friend at the orphanage, were the only ones left in the room. Together they ran down the stairs, put on their shoes, got an apple, and left. They made it just in time for the school bus.

At school Harry got over to his group of friends. Though he and Matt were good friends, they didn't get together that much at school. He smiled as he saw his friends standing at the entrance. They were a group. None of them was really a jock, or a nerd, or a skater, but they were sort of a mix. Well, except for the nerd part. But they _were _smart. He saw all his friends already there. Todd, Jake, Chad and Troy. Todd had brown hair and blue eyes, and played basketball, and skateboarded a lot. Jake skateboarded the most, and was perhaps the least smart of them all, but still smart. He had blond hair and blue eyes. He often made really witty comments that had them all cracked up. He was also the one with the most detentions, most often for talking back to a teacher. Chad had a darker skin, and had black hair and brown, almost black eyes. He played hockey with Harry, and was really a sports person. The same for Troy, he was captain of the school basketball team. He had brown hair and brown eyes.

They were the hottest guys in school, something they were definitely proud of. They were also the ones with the most detentions because of all of their pranks. In short, they were smart, sporty, hot, funny, and everyone liked them, even the teachers, though they didn't let it on.

" Hey look who it is!" Jake said.

" Harry, you're late!!" Chad said, giving a dramatic gasp.

" Yeah, I had a little problem this morning" He answered

" Oh I know what you mean, I have a lot of those too." Todd smirked

Harry shivered " Urgh, I did NOT need to know that. And second of all, I meant I overslept!" Harry said, hitting Todd over the head.

"Anyway, what's got you guys so riled up?" Harry asked. Troy answered him telling about a party that would be held at The Streets Saturday. The Streets was a place were all the teenagers went to, and most ended up drunk, or at least tipsy.

The bell rang, announcing the start of the schoolday (answered with groans from all five boys).

"Exam time!!" Jake said with fake-cheerfulness, and the five boys raced towards the entrance. All of them knocking into the doors, dramatically feeling their heads if they were still intact, and went inside, continuing their race. To their delight, they earned amused looks and giggles from most of the girls.

It was a good thing Harry didn't know that this was the week his wish, the one he had had as long as he knew what a wish was, would come true.

--

After school Harry took the bus to Annie's work. She worked as a family doctor, and because of his frequent visits he was well known at her work.

"Harry!"

Harry snapped out of his thoughts and walked back a little to see the secretary who had called him.

"Annie's not in right now. She told me to tell you she had an urgent call from an old friend, and had to leave. She said you could come by the day after tomorrow, she would be in then." Helen, the secretary said.

Harry was not stupid, he knew 'urgent call from an old friend' equals 'Order of the Phoenix meeting'.

"Okay, but could I write her a message? I got an A on my physics test, and I'd really like to tell her. So could I just go into her office for a sec?" Harry asked, putting on his irresistible façade. No one could resist it. He knew what he was asking wasn't aloud, because he could look into documents and that was illegal.

"Erm…well..I.." She spluttered. She looked at him, and said " I suppose I _could_ let you in for a minute. I know Annie always locks everything. But not more than one minute!"

She got up and opened the door for him. Once inside, Harry got out a piece of paper and wrote down his message.

Once he was done he stuck it on her phone with a piece of tape. Though when he brushed his hand against the horn, his eyes closed and he stiffened for a moment.

Once he got out of his tensed state, he was chalk white and shaky. He got out of the building as quickly as he could, not bothering to thank Helen.

He walked to a nearby park and sat down at the river's bank. After a while he got out his books and tried to do his homework.

**Thank you for your patience with this chapter!! And please review!! **

**Xx.**


	3. Revelations and Explanations

Chapter three:

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed!**

Chapter three:

Revelations and Explanations

"I can't believe Voldemort is really back." Annie sat down in a chair Amy Black had quickly conjured. Had she not, Annie would be having an arse-ache right now.

Almost a year ago Annie had been called for an emergency meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. She was worried when she had been called, after all, she hadn't heard of them for almost a year, so she feared they had figured out about Harry. Boy had she been wrong.

The news she had gotten was much worse.

Dumbledore believed Voldemort to be back. Evidence of dark magic had been found in a muggle village. Ever since, the Order had been on the lookout for more evidence of Voldemorts return, although most of the members were convinced he was back anyway. Dumbledore had tried talking with the minister to warn the wizarding people, but the minister had refused to believe he was back because he was afraid of losing his job. Between the minister refusing to believe, and the Order trying to prove he was back, there had been attacks and disappearances, and frankly Annie was surprised Voldemort had not yet attacked Fairfax. Though that would probably give away Harry's location to the Order, and if Voldemort wanted to use Harry he would be better off to manipulate him silently.

Severus Snape, spy for the Order, was of little help to them. Apparently Voldemort worked with his most trusted from his inner circle only, so it was unfortunate Snape wasn't a part of it, or else the Order would have known straight away that Voldemort had returned.

So the last year the Order had mostly worked to protect Voldemorts targets. One being the prophecy, the other being Harry Potter. The Order had worked very hard to find him, but hadn't succeeded, which was of course because of Lily's and her enchantments. They had also tried to protect the prophecy, which was inside the Ministry of Magic. Just days ago Voldemort had made a huge attempt to uncover it: he sent a few of his most trusted followers to retrieve it. The Order had kept them at bay, so then Voldemort showed up, and seconds after Dumbledore, and there had been a huge fight between them. The prophecy had been destroyed in the fight, and no one had been able to hear it. Seconds after the fight between Dumbledore and Voldemort, the aurors had shown up and witnessed Voldemort fleeing the Ministry. The next day the headlines of the Daily Prophet read 'HE WHO MUST NOT BE NAMED **RETURNED**'.

And now here was the first Order meeting since that fiasco. It was definite, Voldemort was back. Even though she already knew he was back, it was still a bit of a shock to actually know for _sure_ he was back. It was definite there would be a war now. And they would have to fight it. _Harry_ would have to fight it.

She remembered that at that first Order meeting she had asked how Voldemort could come back from the _dead._

Dumbledore had explained to them that Voldemort had never really been dead, but almost. That he had probably been less alive than a ghost. He had told them that the night Lily died, she probably died trying to protect Harry, and that that act left Harry with a protection. A protection of love. Voldemorts killing curse of hate could not penetrate that protection, so the curse rebounded and hit Voldemort instead. But since Voldemort wasn't fully human anymore because of all the dark rituals he had done on himself, he couldn't die. Or didn't die wholly or something like that. The first part she already knew, but she didn't quite understand the second part, but she had a feeling Dumbledore knew something about it that the rest didn't.

She was still processing the information, when Harry came to topic.

"We _must_ find him. If Voldemort does before us, he could taint Harry beyond repair. And if Harry is lost, in the long run so will we."

"But Albus, how do you propose we _do_ that? It's all the order _has_ been doing for nine years!!"

"What I don't understand is how Harry got away from that house. Unless he had outside help."

"The poor dear has been living alone for so long, he's got to come back!"

"I don't see why we need the brat. Probably just as arrogant and self-centered as his father."

After that everything turned quiet. Everyone turned to look at Snape, who had made the comment.

Sirius, who had always had trouble keeping his temper in check, especially when it came to Snape, yelled:

" Can't you for _once_ in your good-for-nothing life keep your trap _shut??_ No one is interested in what _you_ think snivellus!!"

Snape was about to retort, when James said something, for the first time since the meeting started.

" Why do you judge my son without knowing him? I didn't raise him, he's probably nothing like me." He said the last part bitterly.

Ever since Lily left, something had changed in James. Everyone saw it. It had made him grow up, more serious and much less his hyper, energetic, and funny self. Only with Sirius and Remus he was his old self, and even not always in public. This change had hit everyone who knew him hard, because they all thought he was so full of life, nothing could ever get him down. People felt for him. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending how you look at it, Annie was a very compassionate person who was currently too wrapped up in everything, and forgot for a moment she was supposed to keep Harry a secret.

"He's a lot like you. You'd be surprised. He got all the good quality's of you and Lily, he's practically the definition of 'perfect'."

She only noticed her mistake when everyone turned to look at her with stunned, disbelieving faces. She went beet-red. If there was one thing she wasn't good at, it was being stared at by so many people! When caught sight of James' face, she suddenly felt immensely guilty for keeping this a secret, and looked down at the floor. 'Damn me and my big mouth!' she cursed 'there go eight years of hard work, occlumensy and breakdowns!'.

"Annie?"

She looked up to see Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling.

"Is there something you feel we need to know?"

She was about to retort, telling him he was just imagining things. But when she saw James' eager and hopeful face, she didn't have the hart to say she new nothing.

"Yes, I do." She then proceeded to tell them about how she had ran into Lily, Lily begging her not to tell anything, and her hiding Harry after Lily's death. At the end of the story most people looked at her with either disbelief, or betrayal. Some with both.

But not Dumbledore, he still had that damn twinkle in his eyes.

"I wonder though" he started "why Lily was so keen on Harry staying hidden."

A lot of people looked at her again, though this time with curiosity in their eyes. 'Well, you asked for it.' She thought.

"Because of the prophecy." She answered, as if being asked what two plus two was. Most people got a confused look on their face, and Annie could read one question on all of them:

'How did Lily know of the prophecy before anyone was told about it?'

There was a moment of silence, until. "How did Lily find out about it? She hadn't been informed of it at the time of her departure." Dumbledore asked.

The prophecy had been made somewhere during March, and Lily had left in September. No one could figure out why, not even Dumbledore. After all, Lily and James had always been madly in love with each other, even when al the new stuff of a marriage had worn off. And they had Harry, and Lily being the protective mother she was, could practice all of her mothering skills on him. James always spoiled him, and one look at Harry always made him crack a smile, even after a hard and tiring day of work. They had the kind marriage you only read about in fairy tails, so everyone was enormously surprised when Lily had left without a reason.

Dumbledore only told them about the existence of the prophecy after the 31st of October, after Lily was murdered. She winced, thinking back to how James had lost his temper. _That_ had been the _real_ reason they had to find a new headquarters, and Sirius had chosen that exact time to happily announce his mother's death. Hence why they now had this house as headquarters.

But back to the main subject. Dumbledore had not told them the contents of the prophecy, but he had told James (and therefore, she knew Sirius, Remus, Amy and Aeris where aware of it too) that the prophecy spoke of a child born at the end of the seventh month, and that he would be a huge threat to Voldemort in the future.

But now she had a problem. She also didn't know the contents of the prophecy, Lily wouldn't tell her, but she did know how Lily knew. It was a talent few owned, and Lily, as well as Harry, was one of them. Lily hadn't told anyone about it, for fear that it would get out, and that Voldemort would want to use it to his advantage. And people would bug her, ask her to touch objects and tell them what she saw. That was the talent. To touch objects that had a connection to an important event. Anyway, when touching said object, one would get a vision of sorts, and see said event. The event was usually something that had yet to come, and it would be an important clue (in this case the prophecy) or something else that would put a change in current events, or history.

The problem was: Lily had sworn her to secrecy, for Harry's sake.

"Annie?"

"…"

"Annie, I really want to know the reason Lily left. Let alone the fact that I have the _right_ to know." James pleaded her.

"Well… I don't know. Lily swore me to secrecy." She answered. He looked at her with his puppy dog eyes. 'So that's where Harry got it. Why am I surprised?'

"Well, you see..." and she proceeded to tell them about Lily being able to get premonitions, how she had seen the prophecy being made, and how she had fled in hopes of protecting Harry _and_ James.

After she had told her story, there was a deafening silence. You could have heard a pin drop. She looked around the room. She saw Remus Lupin, staring very hard at a certain place on the table, and his wife Aeris, had her hand covering her mouth. Amy Black had tears in her eyes, and was opening and closing her mouth. Her husband, Sirius Black, didn't bother closing it. It was hanging open; he looked rather unintelligent this way. James Potter sat at the end of his seat, staring at the table. 'I can't imagine what's going through him right now. How is he taking this? Is he reliving the feelings he felt with Lily's departure and her death? Or is he thinking about Harry, and taking him here, getting to know him?' That thought jolted her out of her musings. _What_ was going to happen to Harry?

"What happened the night Harry became the Boy-Who-Lived?" 'Sometimes that man can be so insensitive!' She thought as she looked at Dumbledore and answered him.

"I don't know. I don't think Harry ever told anyone what exactly happened that night. All I know is Lily died protecting Harry, and thanks to that protection Harry lived. All he has left of that night is a lightening bolt-shaped scar on his forehead, and the memory."

"Wait." Aeris said "Harry was _there_? He still remembers it?"

"Yes"

Looking around the room again, she found Dumbledore looking thoughtful. There was no twinkle present in his eyes.

"So you knew about Harry all this time, while we were out searching for him? While I began to think he had died after all!?" James asked.

She guiltily looked at him. "I had promised" was her excuse.

"I want to see him." Was his reply.

"He'll be in school now."

"So get him out."

"I can't just give a call telling him to get his arse down to my office because the father he never met is _demanding_ to see him!" emphasizing the word 'demanding' trying to make him see reason. He was quiet after that. But she did notice something different about him. He had the determination, the reason to live back in his eyes. It was something he had lost when Lily had died.

"Then when _can_ I see him?"

She thought about that. Harry would be coming to visit today after school. With a bit of luck he would touch something, and see this meeting. Of course, that would be with a _lot_ of luck. He would most probably be coming the day after tomorrow, like she had asked. Making up her mind, she answered.

"The day after tomorrow."

**Thank you! **

**Harry and James will meet in the next chapter, also Harry will see Sirius and Dumbledore, and an interesting decision will be made! Three guesses what that will be.**

**Anyway, I need some help from my favorite readers! After Harry and James meet, they'll have to do some stuff together to get to know each other. For example: going to the zoo and James tells stories about the Marauders. The problem is, I don't know what they can do together, or where they can go, so if you could please help me out, I would very much appreciate it!! Also, if anyone knows some really funny marauder fics please send them to me, I think I'll need the inspirations!!**

**P.S. One of you asked if I am going to pair Harry with anyone, and the answer is yes. I don't think it will be Ginny though; instead I will take a leaf out of one of my favorite stories!**

**I love your reviews by the way! And if you guys have anything you want to see in the story, just put it in a review and I'll see if I can work it in. ( In other words, REVIEW!!:P) **


	4. Meetings

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry PotterChapter four:

Meetings

"What's up Raven?" Asked Chad

When Harry looked at him strangely, he elaborated.

"Well you've been annoyingly quiet, which is, by the way, so not you. Usually you're loud and annoying." Chad smirked, and Harry smiled in return. His friends really knew him better than anyone. Well, this part of him that was.

"It's just…you've kept to yourself a lot today, and yesterday. The last time you did that, well, you remember." He looked apologetic at Harry. " And also you're barely paying attention to the game here, and normally nothing can get _you _distracted in a game. So I was just wondering, if you were all right." He said. That's another thing Harry liked about their group. Normally guys didn't talk about their feelings. But all of them had been through their share of trouble. Different trouble than detentions. And they had become immediate friends, with Todd and Jake joining the group later on. They could just be open with one another, and knew each other better than most friends.

But Harry already knew he couldn't tell Chad the truth.

Today was the day he would be going to Annie's, the day that would change his life forever. The premonition he had had was indeed the one where he witnessed the order meeting. He counted himself lucky, for he at least had the time to accept, and embrace the fact that he would be meeting his father, and everything that came with it. After today he would no longer be Harry Evans, anonymous, but fairly well known boy from Fairfax. He would be Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, the Chosen One. Wizard Legend. Wizard Hero.

It was Harry's dream for his father to come and get him, taking him to live in England, to Godric's Hallow, the place his mother had always been so very fond of. But now that it was going to really _happen_, Harry was very nervous. What would his father think of him? Would he approve of him? Would he blame him for Lily's departure? For her _death_?

"No nothing's wrong. Just distracted. Gotta bit of a weird feeling, that's all." He answered

"Ah, I get it." Chad smirked. "Who's the lucky girl this time?"

In answer to his question, Harry threw his hockey stick at Chad and earned himself a time out.

--

A couple of hours later, Harry got off the bus at 2365 Freedom Lane, and entered the building. On his way to office number 7 he passed Helen again, and thanked her for allowing him into Annie's office the other day. The closer he came to her office, the more nervous he got. His mind started doubting him, convincing himself he probably wasn't what his father wanted in a son. Harry had the same type of clothes on as he had the day before yesterday. This morning, he decided that if he was going to meet his father, he should just be himself. If his father didn't like him that way, it wasn't Harry's loss. He had managed fine for the last nine years, without his father. Oh how he now regretted that decision.

More of these kinds of thoughts entered his mind as his feet carried him to door number seven. Once there, Harry took a deep breath, shook his head, clearing it of all thoughts, and knocked on the door.

"Harry! Oh it's so good to see you again!" Annie cried upon seeing him. She quickly pulled him into a hug, to which he stiffened. Ever since he was eight, he had trouble with intimate contact from grown-ups.

Annie, taking no notice of this, pulled him inside her office. Once inside, Harry could see nothing that could point to more people being there. He broadened his scanning senses, and again noticed it was only Annie and him in the room.

The sense to scan auras was another hidden talent of his. Not even Annie knew of it. After he had found out about his destiny, he had resolved to train as hard as he could. He trained himself in occlumency and legilimency (powers of the mind), martial arts, advanced magic, wandless magic, and elemental magic. He personally thought he was OK, but anyone else would have found him powerful. Not to mention Harry had managed to learn all of it in a muggle environment, and had managed to keep it a secret. Though he had to admit, he did train a lot with Annie. But that was just the Hogwarts curriculum.

Annie gave him a cup of tea. But without sugar.

"Uhh, Annie?" she looked at him and he pointed to the sugarless cup of tea.

"Umm, yea. I don't think you should have too much sugar right now" seeing his raised eyebrows, she elaborated "I have some rather… shocking news for you, and I don't want you getting even more hyper because of the sugar."

Harry raised a curious eyebrow. "Uh, thanks?" He wasn't sure if he should feel insulted or not. " But if it's about me meeting my dad, I already know about it."

Annie's face held shock for a moment, but she quickly recovered. "Premonition?" Harry nodded. She looked thoughtful for a moment before it dawned on her. She chuckled. "Of course, I should have known. I saw the note you left me. Congratulations by the way. I suppose you had the premonition while sticking it to my phone? Yes? Well, seeing as I don't have a fireplace in my office, they always call me on the telephone if there's a meeting." The smile quickly wiped itself from her face. "How are you?"

"Nervous, insecure." Was Harry's only reply

There was a moment of silence, before: "Well, there's only one way to get rid of that insecurity. Do you think you're ready?"

'Best get this over with' he thought.

--

A few minutes later Harry heard Annie approaching her office with his father in tow. Harry had his back to the door. He was looking out the window, and what he saw he could only describe as 'Freedom'.

Why was it always _his_ life that was so complicated? He heard the doorknob turn. The man his mother had always loved and missed, the one she gave up her sanctuary for was at the other side of the door. 'Well, not for long' he thought as he heard the door open.

He heard a sharp intake of breath, and after that time seemed to stand still. Harry slowly turned around. He could not help a sharp intake of breath of his own. There stood his _father_. It was like looking into a mirror that showed what you would look like in the future. Though his father didn't look much like the man from his parent's wedding. He had more wrinkles, and the spark in his eyes was missing. He also looked less healthy. Harry was drinking in his fathers image as much as his father his. Harry was still a carbon copy of the man standing before him. His dad.

His father took a step forward.

Harry took a step back.

He didn't know why he did that. Here was his dream come true, and Harry was chickening out? Though he did remember that when he was little, all he understood was that his mother loved his father a lot, and whenever she was sad, it was because he wasn't there. This had caused him to have a small dislike for the man. The man who did not come after his mother, the man who had hurt her so much. He was too small to understand that his mother had taken precautions to keep from being found, but he did know it was his fault when she was sad. He had also felt a little betrayed that his father didn't even come after _him_, his own flesh and blood. After…that night, Harry's dislike only increased. His father had not been there to protect him and his mother. Didn't fathers always do that?

Later he learned from Annie that his father had done all he could to find them, and how much he loved them. The dislike disappeared then, but Harry was still protective of his mother, and would stand up to anyone who insulted or hurt her.

But Harry never could help but think, that if his father had tried hard enough, he would have found them, and in time.

But if it wasn't because of the dislike, then what was the cause? Probably just the shock, he thought.

He looked at the man that had caused all these emotions. He was looking stunned, sad, and betrayed. Harry put his face on neutral, to keep his emotions hidden. 'Long live occlumency' he thought.

"Harry?" That was the first time Harry heard his fathers voice. It made Harry look back up to his face. There were a lot of emotions on his face that Harry wouldn't even begin to decipher. But there stood his _father_, his ticket to the life his mother had always wanted for him. He couldn't even begin fathom how long he had wanted his dad. Something snapped inside him and he ran forward and gave his father the biggest hug he had ever given anyone since his mother's death.

He could feel his father's surprise, but he quickly hugged Harry back "Harry, I finally found you." He croaked. Harry could feel warm teardrops falling on his head.

Harry was vaguely aware of the fact that Annie had left the room. After a while he pulled back from the hug. James and Harry looked at each other for a long time after that. Eventually they sat down. Things grew a bit awkward then.

"So, um. How, how are you?" His dad asked.

"I'm doing OK." Harry didn't know what else he was supposed to say. What _are_ you supposed to say to the father you never met?

Again, there was a bit of an awkward silence. And again, his father tried to strike up a conversation.

"Where do you live now? I heard you were sent to an orphanage, but do you live with other…? James stopped in mid sentence as he saw Harry shake his head no.

"Well then. Umm… so how is school?" James decided to ask about something neutral.

'Does this man never give up?' Harry wondered. 'Is he really that interested in me?' As Harry's hopes began to grow, he decided to award his dad with some information.

"Pretty good I guess. I go to Fairfax High; it's the local school around here. I'm a straight A student, which is the best one can be. A is the highest grade here in the U.S., The grades are A through F." Harry answered. A smile crept on his father's face.

"You must be pretty smart then."

Harry had the decency to blush. Sure, he heard this almost everyday, if not from admiring girls then from teachers. But it was another thing to hear it from your dad, for him at least.

"Well, I don't think I'm _that_ smart. I just chose to continue the subjects I'm good at."

"What subjects do you take then?" James asked.

"A bit of a lot compared to others. Seven in total; English, French, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and P.E." Upon seeing his father's confused face, he elaborated. 'Probably doesn't know much about muggle subjects'

"English and French, well I think those speak for themselves. Mathematics is a sort of Arithmancy, Physics is the 'dead nature' as some call it. It covers stuff like the speed of light and gravity, and does calculations with them. Chemistry is a sort of potions; you mix substances and they react with each other, and then you get new ones. It also talks about stuff like molecules, which are…things… so small you can't see them with the bare eye. Everything, including us is made out of molecules. Molecules themselves exist out of atoms, and we calculate with them as well. Biology is the living nature, anything that's alive. And P.E. is gym class. We practice sports there." Satisfied with his explanation, Harry looked over to his father. He looked like he was still processing the information.

"Those subjects sound pretty hard." Was all he could get out.

Harry smiled at that. "Well they are considered the hardest subjects, because not everyone can do them. But I think they're easy, because once you get the trick, you can do any task they throw at you."

"I still think they sound hard though. And you get top grades in those? Wow, I'm proud of you!" James smiled, a smile that resembled the smile he had on the only picture Harry had of him. Harry smiled in return, feeling good about making his dad proud, and causing him to smile.

"You know, two days ago I got an B on my physics test, while most of my classmates failed it!" Harry said, hoping for more praise.

"Wow, Brilliant!" His dad grinned, and ruffled Harry's hair. Harry stopped for a second at the sign of affection. Nobody had done that to him since his mother had died. James looked confused, then slightly afraid, afraid that he had done something to ruin the shabby contact they had just made. Harry, noticing this and not wanting to lose his father, quickly said:

"Sorry, it's just… Nobody's done that to me since mom… well, you know." They both looked down. There was yet again a silence, until:

"Was she happy?"

Harry would not have heard it if he hadn't been waiting to hear his father say something. His first reaction was 'yes', but then he thought on it. Had his mother been happy? She was always the cheery one, comforting, funny, but strict when needed. He had always admired her. But had she been truly happy?

"No." James looked up. "I don't think she could ever have been truly happy… She didn't have you." Harry looked up also. He saw his father's eyes were moist. He stood up and awkwardly gave his father a pat on the back. James looked up and right into Harry's eyes. Hazel and Emerald boring into each other, reading each other's emotions. Harry could plainly see all the pain and loss James had had to deal with al those years, he could see the yearning to have him, Harry, back, but he could also see the love and desperation in the older mans eyes.

And it scared him.

He quickly put his shields up so it wouldn't be readable in his own eyes, and looked away.

After a quiet moment his father asked more of his daily life, questions Harry was al to eager to answer, as long as it was far away from his life with his mother. So that was why whenever James would bring up Lily Harry would avoid the question. He hadn't discussed her with anyone since her death. Sure, he had told his friends about her, but he always did so without really thinking about her. That would cause him too much pain. The same with Annie, whenever she brought up his mother, Harry would just shut her out and pretend to be listening. Harry had never discussed _that _night with _anyone_.

--

"Wow, so you're really a sports kid huh?" James asked with a smile

"Yes. But it's really more relaxing, and fun when you're the best at it." Harry said with a fake arrogance. Of course, his trainings were anything _but_ relaxing, and James knew it.

"Bet you've never had a _real_ workout then." James said with a smirk

"Hey! I bet I've had more workout than you!" But Harry immediately knew he was wrong, looking at his fathers muscular built. They looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"So besides your soccer and hockey training, do you have any other hobbies?"

Before Harry could answer the question, there was a knock on the door and it opened. Harry stole a quick glance at the clock and noticed he had been here for almost and hour and a half! Harry focused his attention back to the door and saw three people standing there. One he already knew; Annie. There was one he suspected he knew the identity of, and one total stranger.

"Hey Padfoot, Albus" James said with a nod to 'Albus'. That confirmed Harry's suspicion, the old man before him was indeed Albus Dumbledore. Harry scanned the third of the entrees. He too was a wizard, and above average level. The name Padfoot didn't sound familiar. Yet he did seem to be so, in a strange way.

"Harry, I'd like you to meet my best friend, Sirius Black, aka Padfoot." James said.

"Hi, I'm Harry. If you hadn't already guessed." Harry smiled. 'OK, so maybe he isn't a total stranger. I probably knew him when I was a baby.' "Sirius Black, at your service." He answered with a grin. "Wo" he said, as his eyes swayed from Harry to James, and back to Harry. "Harry looks just like you Prongs!"

"Prongs?"

"Yep, Prongsie is James' nickname!" Sirius smirked.

"Okay okay! Harry, this is Albus Dumbledore. And" James looked at Sirius "it's just _Prongs_ or _James_! Not Jamie, not Jam_sie_ and DEFINITELY not _Prongsie_!!

"Why not? It makes you… uhm… cuter?"

James had already opened his mouth to retort, but Dumbledore cleared his throat and it immediately shut the two men up. Now that they did, they could all hear Harry sniggering behind his hand. 'Honestly, they're like almost forty and they still fight like a bunch of kids!' he thought. The fact that they'd made Harry laugh gave James and Sirius gigantic smiles.

Once finished, Harry looked at the much older man. 'He sure seems powerful' he thought. 'Powerful aura, many secrets. Wise. And… addicted to lemon drops?' Harry saw as he scanned Dumbledore's aura.

"Hello Harry, it's a pleasure to finally meet you." Dumbledore said as he offered Harry his hand. He hesitantly took it. He was hesitant because he didn't immediately trust this man. The man had an aura around him that made you want to trust him, and because of that Harry was cautious.

Only Dumbledore noticed this though.

"I trust everything is well?" He asked. Both Harry and James nodded.

"I am very happy for you. Both of you need and deserve the family that you have been deprived of for so long." Dumbledore smiled. Harry narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me sir" Harry said rather coldly " but I don't think it is up to you to decide what I need and what not. I have been on my own for the past nine years and as you can see, I've been doing fine. So if you could please let me decide for myself, I would much appreciate it."

He didn't like it if people spoke for him, or decided things concerning him. The last nine years hadn't been completely useless, after all Harry had learned to take care of and depend on himself. He wasn't going to let anyone control him, or his actions. That's why people said he was just like his hair, uncontrollable. He knew what he had to do in the future, and he could easily help himself get there. He didn't need this man telling him what he needed and what not.

Everyone looked stunned at the way Harry had talked to the older wizard. Dumbledore recovered quickly, and answered.

"Of course Harry, forgive me. It didn't sound the way I meant it. I've just seen James struggle with this for so long, and ever since knowing of your whereabouts he has gained something back that he lost so many years ago. I can only guess that you missed your father as well, and so came to the conclusion that you would need each other now that you knew of each other." Dumbledore said. Harry nodded in return.

"Also, I came here to make you an offer Harry." Harry became curious at that. What did Dumbledore want to offer him? He knew what Dumbledore wanted him to achieve, but what was this offer? "I'm listening." He said

"Have you ever heard of Hogwarts?"

Harry began to get an idea where this would be heading. "Yea"

"I would like for you to attend next year. If you agree, you will need to catch up during the summer, so there won't be much free time. However a whole new world will open for you, a world in which your family lives. A world that was your mother's."

Harry thought about that. This was a _big_, life-changing situation. And not just for him. But he would have to say goodbye to everything he had ever known. To his home, his friends, his _life_. But he also knew he had to do this. It was his destiny; it was what he had been preparing for, ever since he had found out.

"Okay, I accept." His father got the largest smile on his face Harry had ever seen, and Sirius was also smiling broadly. Dumbledore had a smile, but his eyes spoke the most. They were twinkling so much Harry wanted to put on sunglasses. "However there is one part of your offer I don't agree with" The smiles were wiped off their faces immediately.

"I don't feel much for 'catching up' during the summer."

"But Harry you will have to, you cannot go to school without a proper foundation."

"But I have a proper foundation. Didn't Annie tell you? She tutored me in magic ever since I found out I was a wizard." All eyes turned to Annie. "Well, it's true. Ever since he turned eleven we practiced the Hogwarts curriculum. We've finished fifth year in al the subjects." She was answered with, yet again, stunned looks.

"But how did you get a wand?"

"We got one from the black market, and don't look at me like that! We didn't have any other choice now did we? I could hardly take him out shopping in Diagon Alley with everyone on the lookout for him!" She said

"Well than all is settled. Annie, we will discuss the date of young Harry's departure. Now that we know Harry doesn't need to catch up, he has more time to say goodbye to his friends. I'm afraid that it is time to go, James, Sirius. It was nice meeting you Harry, I will see you again soon." Dumbledore said. "Yea, you too sir. Goodbye."

"Bye Harry, nice seeing you again." Sirius smiled, to which Harry smiled in return

"Bye Sirius. See you later."

James smiled at him. "Bye Harry." He seemed to hesitate, and then took Harry into a hug. Harry stiffened, but put his arms around his father. "I love you Harry, don't you ever forget that." James whispered so only Harry could hear it. "Thanks." Harry hesitantly smiled. His dad grinned back.

"See you, Harry"

"Bye."

--

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	5. Getting Acquainted

--

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

--

Chapter five:

Getting acquainted

"Where am I going to be staying?" Harry asked for what must be the hundredth time.

"Like I told you the last hundred times, I cannot tell you!" Annie answered exasperated.

Harry only grumbled in response. For two weeks he had gotten the same answer over and over, and as he wasn't the type to let things be hidden from him, he kept asking. And thus he had successfully managed to get Annie very annoyed, something that was usually quite a feat to accomplish.

Said two weeks had simply been a blur to him. Some things stood out, like the exams and the parties and the matches he'd played. With everything going on, he hadn't been able to study very well for his exams, but luckily his teachers new of his situation and would probably cut him some slack. But still, he didn't like it if he had screwed up. He wanted to finish his Muggle schooling with good grades, the kind of grades he'd had all the time, he didn't want to finish it with the worst report card ever.

The party's were, naturally the most fun. There had been loads of them, classmates throwing graduation parties, clubs being open much longer than usual, hockey and soccer parties, even the school had thrown an end-of-the-year party. And then there was of course the Good-bye party his friends had thrown him. It had all been loads of fun, though some of the parties had left him quite drunk.

And then there were the matches. He'd done his best ever, in his opinion. Seeing as he wasn't going to come back next year, he gave his all in the last matches. And so, they'd won. With hockey 4-2 and with soccer 5-2. But, he wouldn't be so arrogant as to take all the credit for himself; his team was really very good after all. The best of it all however, was that his father had come to watch his soccer game! Maybe that's why he was so intent on doing his best, so he could show his dad how good he was. He still remembered the flip-flop his stomach had made, and the rush of pride he'd felt when he saw his father in the stands, cheering him on.

But the thing that stood out most from the last two weeks was the conversation he'd had with Annie.

-Flashback-

_He knocked on the door of Annie's office. He heard a small 'come in' and he opened the door. Annie looked up from the computer, smiled at him and said "Just a moment Harry, I'm almost done." He took a seat on the other side of her desk and stared around the room. The walls were cream colored and she had a parquet floor. There was a filing cabinet beside her desk and on the wall next to him a bookcase. On the wall opposite hung a big picture and stood another cabinet. The room was decorated with her diplomas and pictures and plants. Altogether it had a very homey look._

"_Would you like something to drink Harry?" He was snapped out of his thoughts and he answered that he'd like some water. Once Annie was seated again, he fidgeted a bit under her scrutinizing gaze. There was a bit of an awkward silence between them._

"_How've you been Harry?"_

"_OK I guess. Just thinking about stuff, and I told everyone I'm going to leave."_

_And the silence recommenced._

"_I've got a question though." Harry asked. "Hogwarts students are supposed to take their OWLs at the end of their fifth year, to know in which subjects they are allowed to continue. I'll be going into sixth year, but I've never taken any OWLs. How's that going to work?" _

_Annie sipped her tea, and answered. " Good you brought that up. Dumbledore said that students that are transferring to Hogwarts to start their sixth year, which is sort of what you'll be doing, are to take their OWLs at the Ministry during the holiday. There is a limit though; they have to be taken before the exam results of the other students are sent out. You'll be taking them on June the 26__th__, the 27__th__, and the 28__th__. It's a bit short for so many OWLs, but it's possible. However, I'd advise you to start studying for them, seeing as you won't be having loads of time to do so after you get to Britain."_

"_When do I leave for Britain then?"_

"_On June the 21__st__."_

"_June the… But that's in less than two weeks!" Harry said angrily. He'd miss al the good stuff, the swimming pool and the beach parties and beach volleyball. And instead, he'd get to be studying for _more_ exams!!_

" _I know. But at least you'll get to play your final sports matches and finish everything in school. Besides, I thought you'd like to spend some time with your dad? He sure wants to with you." She said slyly._

"_Yea I do." He said. So they were back on the dad subject. He decided to ask the question that had been bothering him ever since his father left._

"_Annie, how come… my father didn't stay here? Why did he go back to Britain after we met?" He asked hesitantly and, to those who knew him well, a bit insecure._

_Annie gave him a sympathetic smile. "It's not that he didn't want to stay Harry, cause Merlin knows he did. It's just a lot of small things that when added up, it would be best if he didn't stay here for two weeks."_

"_Like what?" He asked, a little angry._

"_To begin with, this had a big, life-changing impact on you both. Meeting each other for the first time after so many years would, emotionally, be a lot to take in, and it needed to be coped with before you two would see each other daily. It needs to be taken in steps you know? Not go biting off more than you can chew. So with that, it would be better if James stayed in Britain, and visited instead of coming to live here for two weeks._

_Secondly, James couldn't just leave everything behind, what with the war going on now. James is really busy with his job, and he couldn't just up and leave with no special reason at all. And before you say 'Am I not special enough', yes, you are. But we cannot tell Scrimgeour, the Minister for Magic, that you are found just yet. You nor James would get any rest if he did, and he would tell the public you were found as a moral boost and we _cannot_ have that yet. No one is allowed to know where you currently are. And if James was, somehow, able to leave it would still be suspicious to Voldemort, and it would be too much of a coincidence if James just happened to temporarily live near where you and Lily lived. Voldemort would investigate, maybe find out about you and there would be a huge attack._

_James, of course, fought tooth and nail against this, and I believe he even fired some nasty jinxes that ended up in people being brought to the Spell Damage department in St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. But in the end he gave in, because it was what would be best for you."_

_Harry nodded. He could understand all that. He guessed that they, whoever 'they' was, were right about the arguments against James coming here for two weeks._

"_So, when I get to Britain, where will I be staying?"_

-End of Flashback-

"Here, you know what to do with this. Throw it in the fire, say 'Hogwarts, headmasters office', and keep your eyes closed."

Harry did as he was told, and felt himself spinning. He opened his eyes slightly, and saw different living rooms spin by as he was traveling. Suddenly it stopped and Harry was thrown out of the fireplace. 'Bloody floo' he thought as he felt someone help him up. He dusted himself off and looked around. He saw Dumbledore smiling at his predicament, and he saw his father was grinning at him, as well as Sirius. Suddenly he was pushed to the ground again and felt something land on top of him. Or rather someone. He groaned as he realized he hadn't gotten out of the way of the fireplace and because of that Annie had landed on top of him.

"Oh sorry Harry, are you alright?" she asked

"Yeah, peachy" He answered.

Annie playfully glared at him. Harry dusted himself off, and took a look around the headmasters' office. He saw a lot of gadgets and weird instruments that looked like they would break if you blew at them. He didn't know what they were for, and made a mental note to ask Dumbledore about them later. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and he saw his father's smiling face.

"Hi Harry, how've you been?" he asked.

"Okay I guess. Just saying goodbye and stuff, you know?' his dad nodded in return. "Hi Sirius" Harry said, and Sirius grinned mischievously. Harry had the idea that was a standard smile for Sirius. "Harry, so nice to re-see you" Sirius said. Harry grinned; he was going to get along just fine with this man.

"Padfoot, is 're-see' even a word?"

"I don't know, just felt like saying it." Sirius shrugged.

"How Amy still puts up with you is beyond me." James sighed, shaking his head.

"She keeps saying the same thing."

"Very well, that is enough. Harry, Annie just told me you have been bugging her for the location of your to-be whereabouts for the past two weeks" Dumbledore said smiling "so am I correct in thinking you still want to know?" He asked. Harry nodded eagerly.

"You will be staying at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. Do you know what that is Harry?" Harry nodded. "The headquarters lies at number 12 Grimmauld Place, London."

"London!?" Harry asked. Of all of England, he had the luck of going to _London_!! All the possibilities…

"But Albus…" James started. "I really wanted to show Harry Godric's Hallow…you know?" Dumbledore thought for a moment. "James, you understand that for Harry's safety, he would be best placed at headquarters?"

"But Albus, this is _Godric's Hallow_!! Lily and I lived there, it was Harry's home, it was what Lily left!! I've got to at least show Harry. Besides… I already made his room ready for him…" James said, while nervously fidgeting with the hem of his sleeve. Harry on the other hand, his thoughts were going a mile a minute. Godric's Hallow… His mother had always loved that place, she had wanted so badly for him to grow up there. And he had always wanted to see it. And his father had already made a room ready for him. Did his father want him back so badly? Harry got a weird feeling in his stomach, and he noticed a smile tugging his lips.

"Very well James. Harry will stay there for one week. One week only. After that he will go to headquarters. It would probably be better this way anyway. You and Harry will get to know each other a bit before you have to live in a full house." Dumbledore smiled a little.

"YES!!" James yelled, throwing his hands up in the air like a little kid. It made Harry laugh. In any case, Harry would have objected to decisions being made for him, but he couldn't help but agree with this outcome. 'Wonder what Dumbledore meant with 'full house'.'

--

5 Minutes later, Harry, again, fell out of the fireplace. Only this time there was a difference. His father caught him.

"You want to be careful there, Harry." James said. "Don't want to be rushing you off to the hospital already." James smirked at him.

"O don't worry, I'll fall carefully." Harry said sarcastically, and James laughed.

Harry took the opportunity to look around the room, which was obviously the living room. It was homey, was his first thought. He also noticed a lot of similarities between his home with his mom and Godric's hallow. He _also_ noticed his dad was a real Gryffindor fanatic. There was a lot of red and some gold in the living room, like the red couch and the cherry-wood coffee table. And, what surprised Harry, a TV. As he scanned the room he also noticed a lot of photographs. He walked over to them and picked one up. It was of his mother, Lily.

She was beautiful as always, smiling her heartwarming smile, her eyes shining with happiness. He wondered how old she was here. Next he saw a photograph of, again, his mother. But she looked a little older now, and next to her were three boys standing. Harry recognized one of them as his father, who had his arm around Lily's waist. The one next to his dad looked like a younger version of Sirius Black. On Lily's other side stood another man, he had brown hair and brown eyes. Harry thought he looked rather tired.

"That's Remus Lupin, my other best friend." Harry jumped slightly at the voice behind him. He had been so wrapped up in the photographs he hadn't noticed his father sneaking up on him. "It was our graduation day when this picture was taken." His father continued. They both looked at the photo again before Harry snapped out of his daze and asked his father for the "grand tour".

The house turned out to be more like a manor to Harry, when he compared it to what he was used to. Downstairs there was a living room, a kitchen, a dining room, and what seemed to Harry a library, but his father called it 'just' a study room. Upstairs there was a master bedroom, and four other large bedrooms with three bathrooms. Apparently, his dad had his own bathroom and walk-in closet coming with the whole master bedroom. Harry had his OWN (!!) bed- and bathroom. He couldn't believe it! No more sharing a bed- and bathroom with five other boys for him! When he walked into his new bedroom his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. There was a four-poster bed that looked like it belonged to a king, a four-doors closet and a fancy-looking desk. There were two large windows on both sides of his bed that went from the ceiling to the floor. When he walked over to them, he could see what he thought was a quidditch pitch in the back yard.

"I didn't know what colors you preferred, so I did your room in the basic ones." Harry, noticing the room was decorated in red and gold, raised his eyebrows at his father. 'Jake was right, British people _are_ weird', he thought. When he voiced his thoughts, his father laughed. " I guess it's strange yeah. But every Potter has always been a Gryffindor. I assume you know red and gold stand for Gryffindor house?" Harry nodded. "So there's your answer, red and gold are our family colors, our basics. You can change it if you want to." His father quickly added.

Harry didn't want to change it though, after all, this was the first present-like thing he had ever gotten from his father.

When they continued the tour, Harry found out that two of the other rooms were guestrooms, though it was only Sirius and Remus and their families using them. James told Harry that sometimes Sirius and Remus would stay over, a sort of a boys-night, because James was always alone. The last room was a spare, according to James. It was a room they (James and Lily) had wanted to make into a playroom for Harry and any future children, but now it was more of a hobby-room. James kept his quidditch and dueling things here. He told Harry he sometimes practiced dueling here, to stay in top-shape for the war. Harry was very intrigued by this, as he had taken the martial arts-classes his school had offered. His teachers had said he was a natural, but as he already had soccer and hockey training, he couldn't afford the time and the money to take martial arts classes as well, something he regretted a lot.

After the tour James suggested that he make dinner while Harry unpacked. James levitated Harry's bag to his new room, and left rather awkwardly, leaving Harry to his thoughts. It seemed so much longer ago that he said goodbye than it was. This morning his friends had come over, to give one final goodbye, though they had said the same at the party they had thrown him. It was hard for Harry to say goodbye, after all, the people at the orphanage had been his friends and family for eight years.

Harry looked from his sports bag on his bed, to the decorations in his room. He decided that he and his bag looked very out of place, as the room looked like it belonged to some rich kid, while Harry looked like he was plucked from the street, which, he sort of was, the thought gloomily.

As he unpacked, he came across a shrunken box. He un-shrank it and while glaring at it he carelessly shoved it to the back of the closet. Looking up, he was stunned to see his closet was already full! He saw what he recognized as robes: wizarding wear, but also muggle clothes, pajamas, and even a tracksuit! 'James probably did some shopping earlier' Harry thought, as he looked at the multiple pairs of shoes.

He felt slightly guilty calling his father 'James', but he couldn't bring himself to call him dad. Yet, Harry reminded himself. Most people thought fifteen-year old boys were careless, their minds only on one thing, not caring who they hurt. Usually not even aware of it if they _did_ hurt someone. But Harry was different. 'As always,' he thought bitterly. He had always wanted his father to be a part of his life, so when Harry would call him 'dad', he wanted to really mean it. Harry always meant what he said one hundred percent, otherwise he wouldn't say it. And he wasn't about to break his record.

--

When Harry walked down the stairs, he got a slightly nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. He had no idea what to say; after all they had discussed most of the small things the first time they met. As he reached the doors to the dinning room, he silently congratulated himself at finding it on the first try. He quietly walked into the room a bit, while watching his father rush in and out of the room, trying to make the table look perfect. Harry let his eyes slide over the table, and noticed that it had about everything he had ever heard of on it. He raised his eyebrows as his father walked into the room holding a bowl of carrots, again taking no notice of Harry. Feeling mildly insulted, he cleared his throat. The effect it had amused Harry greatly.

James, too wrapped up in his thoughts of how to make the table look perfect for Harry, didn't notice Harry's presence. As he walked in with a bowl of carrots (he hated carrots, he hated the smell, he hated the taste, and he hated the way-too-bright-color-to-be-a-vegetable. But who new, maybe Harry liked them, so he couldn't risk not having them on the table) he heard a small cough. It startled him more than it usually would, and he reached for his wand. The next thing he new, he was covered in carrots, and he heard a lot of clunks on the table. He even thought he heard a small plunge from where the milk stood.

He was awarded by laughter from the room's entrance. As he looked over to it, he saw his son doubled over, holding his ribs from the laughter.

Harry couldn't help it. He felt bad for his father, laughing about it, but it was just too funny not to laugh.

"I hate carrots." James said, as if it was the carrots' fault. This only made Harry laugh harder.

"Then" Harry started "Then why put them on the table?" He asked, still laughing, though not as much as before.

"Well…" James said, looking rather uncomfortable. "I didn't know if you wanted them or not."

"I'm, err, allergic." He said, with an 'I'm sorry' smile.

"Oh." Was all James could get out. As he turned around and looked at the table, he winced. Practically everything was covered with carrots. 'Bloody carrots! They always spoil everything!' Harry couldn't eat any of this if he was allergic; which meant that all his efforts to make the table perfect had been for nothing. He sighed.

"So um… How about take-out?" Harry suggested.

--

Since James had put almost all of the food supplies on the table, they had no other option. Harry though was rather happy with how things had gone. Not only had it given him a good laugh, as well as his father once he had gotten over his annoyance at carrots, it was also a bit of an ice-breaker. And now they could have their dinner on neutral terrain, and Harry couldn't help but feel more comfortable with that.

"This stuff is really good." James said, and Harry couldn't help but smirk. He had introduced his father to muggle fast food. They were currently eating French fries and a croquette, some of Harry's favorites.

"Why are you smirking?"

"I don't know. I just think it's funny that someone can be so awed by the taste of something that I've eaten since forever." He answered.

"Well, I don't have much time to experiment with muggle food much."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm an auror. Dark wizard catcher, you know? And now that the ministry finally acknowledges Voldemorts return, I'm really busy. I work almost the entire time, so I barely have the time to do even my groceries, so I rarely ever get a full meal, let alone going out for dinner. And then there's" James looked around for a moment, and continued in a whisper "the Order. But you already knew about that didn't you?"

"I just read a few rumors about a secret society called the Order of the Phoenix, during the first war, supposedly led by Dumbledore. And from what I've read about Dumbledore, he did seem the type to do something like that. And besides, Annie told me."

"Yeah, well, the books got that right. We have more info on Voldemort's activities, his plans, than the ministry. Sometimes we inform the minister of a big one, like breaking open Azkaban-"

"But I thought Azkaban _was_ broken open?"

"It was. One of our spies informed us it was going to happen, and we, well, Dumbledore, suggested to the minister to take control of Azkaban out of the dementors' hands. The minister, who refused to believe Voldemort was back, refused to do this too. A week later Azkaban was broken open. But the point is, sometimes we 'silently' play some information to the ministry."

Harry nodded. "So you're a member then?"

It was James' turn to nod. "And so was your mother." Foreseeing the awkward silence that was going to come, he continued. "As are Sirius, Remus, Amy, Aeris, and Annie."

"And you're just allowed to tell me all of this?"

"Well, no. But you're allowed to know, you'll find out in a week anyway."

"Uhu… Who are Amy and Aeris?"

"Well, 'member I told you Sirius and Remus are my best friends? Amy is Sirius' wife and Aeris is Remus'. You should have seen our faces when Sirius and Amy announced their engagement. Sirius didn't think he would ever marry, he enjoyed the bachelor life too much for that, and he was way too immature for a commitment like that. Come to think of it, he still is…" James said smiling.

"Yeah, I figured that out. That he's immature that is, I mean he acts like he's my age!"

James laughed. "Yeah well you just about described Sirius. I always said, he acts like a five year old, looks like a twenty-year old, but had the responsibility of a forty-year old. You know with the war and being an auror and all. But you'll get along with all of them, and their kids as well."

"Poor Amy, kids too?"

"Yeah, three, and Remus two. Sirius has a son your age, and Remus a daughter, you'll meet them at headquarters next week."

Harry thought while he munched on his food. "Is that what Dumbledore meant when he said 'full house'?"

"Hu?" James looked at him confused.

"Right after Dumbledore said I could stay at Godric's Hallow, he said we would get to know each other a bit before we had to live in a full house."

James continued to look at him confused, until he said " How did you remember that?"

Harry just shrugged his shoulders

"Anyway, yes, they're staying at headquarters. The Blacks, the Lupins, the Weasleys, and Hermione Granger, so it's rather crowded there."

Harry nodded and continued to eat his food. He couldn't help but feel there was something missing in the story. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks.

"I thought there were four of you? Mom used to tell me about you guys, the Marauders, but there was another guy, Peter wasn't it?"

Suddenly a closed expression formed on his fathers face, and Harry suddenly regretted asking the question. It was obviously something his father didn't fancy discussing.

"He turned. Became a death eater. Are you finished?"

At first Harry didn't understand what his father meant, but then he realized that his father was talking about the food. "Oh, err… Yeah, I am."

"Then let's head home. As much as I don't want to, there are some auror reports that I must finish." James said, his mood suddenly changing to it's cheery self, and Harry quickly adapted to it.

"Does that mean you're going to be working this week?" Harry didn't know where the question suddenly came from, or why he whispered it. He also chose to ignore the disappointed feeling he got.

"No, I, err, demanded to get the week off for personal reasons. The ministry doesn't yet know we've found you, Merlin we wouldn't get any peace if they did. But I do have to go to an Order meeting this week. You can come with me if you want. It would be boring to stay at the Hallow all alone, and at headquarters there will be some kids your age."

Harry scoffed indignantly, "I am no kid", he said, while making a mental note to ask more about them later.

James laughed. "Perhaps not, but you're not an adult either. Don't look at me like that, I heard the same thing when I was your age and I didn't like it anymore than you do now."

As James walked ahead towards the entrance, Harry couldn't help the smile that was tugging at his lips. Maybe there wouldn't be any ice that needed to be broken, Harry thought, as he watched his father turn around to see if he was following.

--

When they came home, Harry said he was tired and went up to his room. He wasn't really tired, but he just wanted to be alone. When he walked into the room, he let his hand glide over the wall, searching for the light switch. He frowned when he found none, and his shoulders slumped when he realized; of course there would be no light switch! This was a magical home. He opened the door further to see if he could find something that would give light, and he found a candle on his bedside table. 'That will do for now', he thought relived. He didn't fancy disturbing his father to ask how to work the light.

He halted his movement as his eyes caught the table's drawer. He slowly opened it, revealing the old and partly burned book he had put there earlier. Though the book looked worn and ugly, it was his most dear possession. He sat on the bed, Indian style, with his back against the headboard, and opened the book. On it's first page was the picture Harry had probably looked at most of all. The photograph of his parents' wedding.

He sighed, and stared at it for a very long time, before going to sleep.

-

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**About the comment about James leaving, I hope this explanation is good enough for you. I didn't think about James staying there 'till Harry goes to Britain, but I think this is good enough a reason for him not to. I must say though, I had to laugh about the comment that James put a couple of people in the Spell Damage department of St Mungo's. I really think he'd do something like that in that situation. **

**I was going to make this chapter longer, but I'm having trouble getting the next part on paper, so I decided to post this and put in the next scenes with the next chapter. **

**Lastly, I love your reviews, please keep sending them in!**

**xx.**

**By the way, if there's any news about me not updating for a while or something like that (like the last couple of weeks, cause we were having exams and I had to study really hard), then it'll be on my profile. Please review! Cause I never get tired of 'em!**


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